Wallace Lloyd Wilson (Special Recognition) 1921-1995

Wally Wilson was born May 25, 1921 in Berwick, Nova Scotia. His father, Lloyd, was a Royal Air Force pilot and his mother, Irene, was born in England. They were married in Halifax after the First World War and later settled in Berwick. In the mid-1920's they moved to Oshawa, Ontario where Wally's passion for sports grew. As a member of the Oshawa Generals (1939-1941) of the Ontario Hockey Association, Wilson was a two-time OHA Champion and a Memorial Cup Champion with the Generals in 1940.

Following one season with the Hershey Bears (1941-1942) of the American Hockey League, Wilson joined the Toronto RCAF of the Senior Ontario Hockey Association where he led them to an appearance in the 1942 Allan Cup.

The 1942-43 season saw Wilson share his time with the RCAF, Camp Borden RCAF, and Brantford RCAF of the National Defense Hockey League before joining the Quebec Aces of the Quebec Senior Hockey League the 1944-45 season.

After another Allan Cup appearance with the Quebec Aces in 1945, Wilson was claimed by the Toronto Maple Leafs from the Hershey Bears in the Inter-League Draft in the summer of 1945.

Wally returned to the AHL for the 1945-45 and 1946-47 seasons with the Pittsburgh Hornets. After leading the Hornets in scoring during the 1945-46 season and leading them to the finals in 1947, he was traded to the Boston Bruins from Toronto for cash in the summer of 1947.

Although he never played a single game with the Maple Leafs, Wilson appeared in 53 regular season games and one playoff game with the Bruins in the 1947-48 season, recording 11 goals and 8 assists for 19 points.

Wally didn't remember much about the four or five years he spent in Berwick but the ties run deep. During his pro career, he didn't hesitate to tell journalists he was a "bluenoser". As for his status as the only Berwick born player to play in the NHL, "He thought it was great" said daughter Bonnie Welsh.

The Berwick Sports Hall of Fame pays special recognition to Wally Wilson as the "first" Berwick born player in the NHL.